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trailing fleabane, whiplash daisy

short-Ray fleabane, spear-leaf fleabane, vergerette à feuilles fines

Habit Biennials or short-lived perennials (sometimes appearing annual), 2–45(–60) cm; fibrous-rooted, caudices simple.
Stems

first erect (greenish proximally; usually single, simple), then producing herbaceous, leafy, prostrate runners (usually with rooting plantlets at tips, populations often becoming clonal mats), strigose (often sparsely; hairs antrorsely appressed, consistent in orientation), sometimes slightly glandular distally.

erect or basally ascending, sparsely to densely hirsute, eglandular.

Leaves

basal (often persistent) and cauline;

basal blades broadly oblanceolate to elliptic, 20–55 × 3–9 mm;

cauline abruptly reduced distally, margins entire or dentate, faces strigose, eglandular.

basal (persistent) and cauline;

basal blades oblanceolate to spatulate, 13–80(–150) × 1.5–5(–12) mm, margins entire, usually spreading ciliate, faces sparsely to moderately hirsute to glabrate, eglandular;

cauline mostly linear (sometimes longer than basal, usually erect or nearly so).

Involucres

3–5 × 6–13 mm.

4–9 × 7–17 mm.

Ray florets

40–125;

corollas white, often with an abaxial midstripe, often drying lilac, 4–10 mm, laminae not coiling or reflexing.

Ray (pistillate) florets

70–130 (in 1 series);

corollas white to light pink, 2–3 mm, laminae (filiform) erect, not coiling or reflexing (not surpassing involucres).

Disc corollas

2–3.5 mm.

3–5 mm.

Phyllaries

in 2–3 series, strigose to loosely hirsute, minutely glandular.

in 2–3 series (inner apices acute to acuminate), hirsute to strigoso-hirsute, eglandular.

Heads

1(–3, on proximal branches).

1 or 3–12 usually in loosely racemiform arrays (from erect peduncles distal to midstems, sometimes on proximal 1/3).

Cypselae

0.8–1.3 mm, 2-nerved, faces sparsely strigose;

pappi: outer of setae, inner of 10–17 bristles.

1.3–1.8 mm, 2-nerved, faces sparsely strigose;

pappi: outer of setae, inner of 20–30 (non accrescent) bristles.

Biennuals

or short-lived perennials, 3–15 cm; usually fibrous-rooted, sometimes taprooted, caudices lignescent, rarely branched.

2n

= 18, 27, 36, 45, 54.

= 18.

Erigeron flagellaris

Erigeron lonchophyllus

Phenology Flowering May–Aug(–Sep). Flowering (Jun–)Jul–Aug(–Sep).
Habitat Meadows and grassy slopes, often moist, open areas in grasslands, pinyon pine, oak-pine, pine, aspen, and spruce-fir Moist edges of streams, bogs, ponds, moist tundra, hummocks in meadows, ditch banks, gravelly places, along roads
Elevation (1700–)2100–3600 m ((5600–)6900–11800 ft) (900–)1400–3600 m ((3000–)4600–11800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; ID; KS; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OK; OR; SD; TX; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC; Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; AZ; CA; CO; ID; MN; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OR; SD; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC; MB; NT; ON; QC; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Early season forms of Erigeron flagellaris may consist of a basal rosette and a single, erect, scapiform, monocephalous stem; leafy runners usually develop quickly. Many polyploids of this species are indistinguishable from diploids; some polyploids have features suggestive of genetic influence of E. tracyi.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 20, p. 341. FNA vol. 20, p. 320.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Erigeron Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Erigeron
Sibling taxa
E. abajoensis, E. acomanus, E. acris, E. aequifolius, E. algidus, E. aliceae, E. allocotus, E. alpiniformis, E. anchana, E. annuus, E. aphanactis, E. arenarioides, E. argentatus, E. arisolius, E. arizonicus, E. asperugineus, E. aureus, E. barbellulatus, E. basalticus, E. bellidiastrum, E. bigelovii, E. biolettii, E. blochmaniae, E. bloomeri, E. breweri, E. caespitosus, E. calvus, E. canaani, E. canus, E. cascadensis, E. cavernensis, E. cervinus, E. chrysopsidis, E. clokeyi, E. compactus, E. compositus, E. concinnus, E. consimilis, E. corymbosus, E. coulteri, E. cronquistii, E. davisii, E. decumbens, E. denalii, E. disparipilus, E. divergens, E. eatonii, E. elatior, E. elatus, E. elegantulus, E. elmeri, E. engelmannii, E. evermannii, E. eximius, E. filifolius, E. flabellifolius, E. flettii, E. foliosus, E. formosissimus, E. garrettii, E. geiseri, E. glabellus, E. glacialis, E. glaucus, E. goodrichii, E. gracilis, E. grandiflorus, E. greenei, E. heliographis, E. hessii, E. howellii, E. humilis, E. hyperboreus, E. hyssopifolius, E. inornatus, E. jonesii, E. kachinensis, E. karvinskianus, E. klamathensis, E. kuschei, E. lackschewitzii, E. lanatus, E. lassenianus, E. latus, E. leibergii, E. leiomerus, E. lemmonii, E. linearis, E. lobatus, E. lonchophyllus, E. maguirei, E. mancus, E. maniopotamicus, E. mariposanus, E. melanocephalus, E. miser, E. modestus, E. muirii, E. multiceps, E. nanus, E. nauseosus, E. nematophyllus, E. neomexicanus, E. nivalis, E. ochroleucus, E. oreganus, E. oreophilus, E. ovinus, E. oxyphyllus, E. pallens, E. parishii, E. parryi, E. peregrinus, E. petrophilus, E. philadelphicus, E. pinnatisectus, E. piperianus, E. piscaticus, E. poliospermus, E. porsildii, E. pringlei, E. procumbens, E. pulchellus, E. pulcherrimus, E. pumilus, E. purpuratus, E. pygmaeus, E. quercifolius, E. radicatus, E. reductus, E. religiosus, E. rhizomatus, E. robustior, E. rybius, E. rydbergii, E. salishii, E. salmonensis, E. sanctarum, E. saxatilis, E. sceptrifer, E. scopulinus, E. serpentinus, E. sionis, E. sivinskii, E. sparsifolius, E. speciosus, E. strigosus, E. subglaber, E. subtrinervis, E. supplex, E. tenellus, E. tener, E. tenuis, E. tracyi, E. trifidus, E. tweedyi, E. uintahensis, E. uncialis, E. uniflorus, E. untermannii, E. ursinus, E. utahensis, E. vagus, E. velutipes, E. vernus, E. versicolor, E. vetensis, E. vicinus, E. vreelandii, E. watsonii, E. wilkenii, E. yukonensis
E. abajoensis, E. acomanus, E. acris, E. aequifolius, E. algidus, E. aliceae, E. allocotus, E. alpiniformis, E. anchana, E. annuus, E. aphanactis, E. arenarioides, E. argentatus, E. arisolius, E. arizonicus, E. asperugineus, E. aureus, E. barbellulatus, E. basalticus, E. bellidiastrum, E. bigelovii, E. biolettii, E. blochmaniae, E. bloomeri, E. breweri, E. caespitosus, E. calvus, E. canaani, E. canus, E. cascadensis, E. cavernensis, E. cervinus, E. chrysopsidis, E. clokeyi, E. compactus, E. compositus, E. concinnus, E. consimilis, E. corymbosus, E. coulteri, E. cronquistii, E. davisii, E. decumbens, E. denalii, E. disparipilus, E. divergens, E. eatonii, E. elatior, E. elatus, E. elegantulus, E. elmeri, E. engelmannii, E. evermannii, E. eximius, E. filifolius, E. flabellifolius, E. flagellaris, E. flettii, E. foliosus, E. formosissimus, E. garrettii, E. geiseri, E. glabellus, E. glacialis, E. glaucus, E. goodrichii, E. gracilis, E. grandiflorus, E. greenei, E. heliographis, E. hessii, E. howellii, E. humilis, E. hyperboreus, E. hyssopifolius, E. inornatus, E. jonesii, E. kachinensis, E. karvinskianus, E. klamathensis, E. kuschei, E. lackschewitzii, E. lanatus, E. lassenianus, E. latus, E. leibergii, E. leiomerus, E. lemmonii, E. linearis, E. lobatus, E. maguirei, E. mancus, E. maniopotamicus, E. mariposanus, E. melanocephalus, E. miser, E. modestus, E. muirii, E. multiceps, E. nanus, E. nauseosus, E. nematophyllus, E. neomexicanus, E. nivalis, E. ochroleucus, E. oreganus, E. oreophilus, E. ovinus, E. oxyphyllus, E. pallens, E. parishii, E. parryi, E. peregrinus, E. petrophilus, E. philadelphicus, E. pinnatisectus, E. piperianus, E. piscaticus, E. poliospermus, E. porsildii, E. pringlei, E. procumbens, E. pulchellus, E. pulcherrimus, E. pumilus, E. purpuratus, E. pygmaeus, E. quercifolius, E. radicatus, E. reductus, E. religiosus, E. rhizomatus, E. robustior, E. rybius, E. rydbergii, E. salishii, E. salmonensis, E. sanctarum, E. saxatilis, E. sceptrifer, E. scopulinus, E. serpentinus, E. sionis, E. sivinskii, E. sparsifolius, E. speciosus, E. strigosus, E. subglaber, E. subtrinervis, E. supplex, E. tenellus, E. tener, E. tenuis, E. tracyi, E. trifidus, E. tweedyi, E. uintahensis, E. uncialis, E. uniflorus, E. untermannii, E. ursinus, E. utahensis, E. vagus, E. velutipes, E. vernus, E. versicolor, E. vetensis, E. vicinus, E. vreelandii, E. watsonii, E. wilkenii, E. yukonensis
Synonyms E. nudiflorus E. acris subsp. racemosus, E. lonchophyllus var. laurentianus, E. minor, E. racemosus, Trimorpha lonchophylla
Name authority A. Gray: Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts, n. s. 4: 68. (1849) Hooker: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 18. (1834)
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